Effect of Strain and Strain Path on Texture and Twin Development in Austenitic Steel with Twinning-Induced Plasticity

High-manganese (15 to 30 wt pct) austenitic steels exhibit extreme strain hardening because of twinning with increased strain. Twinning in these low stacking fault materials promotes retention of the austenitic microstructure and impedes dislocation motion. A dearth of information is available concerning the extent to which strain path influences twinning in so-called twinning-induced plasticity (TWIP) steels. The present study focuses on the influence of strain level and strain path on texture and twinning in a high-Mn content TWIP steel (Fe17.2Mn0.6C). Electron back-scatter diffraction was employed to measure the twin fraction, twin deviation, twin boundary length, grain misorientation, and volume fraction of different texture components as a function of both uniaxial and biaxial deformation. This information, which is part of the necessary first step toward linking crystallographic texture and twinning to mechanical properties, was used to quantitatively assess the extent to which these critical metallurgical features depend on the amount of straining and the strain path.